Heart to Broken Heart
by luna moody
Summary: “You know, Spencer. In my short life, I have already come to a conclusion about myself. I, Samantha Puckett, am unloveable...BURP." Post iSpeed Date. A little heart to heart talk between friends. Now a three shot. Pairing? Depends on your imagination.
1. Chapter 1

**So, I unexpectedly had a day off today, when I took the whole day off for a doctors appointment, and the appointment got cancelled. Hmmm. What to do? Well, after Painting my toenails five different colors and rearranging my bookshelf so that all of the first letters of the titles spell out PRLLEIDNTOUHYTS (but just the first shelf) I decided to give into my temptation to write a post iSpeed Date fic. I've been looking to do a good one shot...and this probably isn't it. But I did, and you're here reading it because...I really have no idea why you're reading it. But I guess since you are, I should shut up now and actually get on with the story, huh? FINE!!!**

**Disclaimer: If you didn't know by now: Dan is the one with the awesome talent, the great characters, the stupendous show, and a rabbit named cookie. I am the one with a one eyed troll doll and a leaky bathroom sink.**

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Spencer happily gathered the ingredients for his incredible new concoction that he would unleash on Carly when she got back. Everyone knew that new recipe day was Spencer's favorite day of the month, and this time it was Breakfast. He had just taken the biscuits out of the oven and gave a quick stir to the eggs when he heard a knock at the door.

"Coming!" He yelled, giving one more fluff to his eggs before sprinting toward the door. He quickly opened the door to reveal Sam standing a little lackluster before him. "A-Ha!" he yelled as he saw her. If anyone would appreciate his new concoction it would be Sam.

"You're just in time. Follow me!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her along as he jogged back toward the kitchen. "Here, take a seat." He said enthusiastically as he released her to go to one of the stools.

"Where's Carly?" Sam asked miserably.

"She's gone with Freddie to Stereo Hut. She should be back in a few minutes." Spencer busied himself stirring the eggs and taking the biscuits off the pan. He missed the look on Sam's face falling a little from the news that her friends were gone together without her.

"I decided that I can't wait any longer. How would you like to be the first to try my latest recipe? Its eggs and gravy wrapped in a cone of bacon and topped with a piping hot biscuit. It's called…The Ba-cone!"

Sam gave a small sympathy smile at his enthusiasm and then stared down at the counter. "No thanks, I'm not very hungry."

Spencer dropped his whisk and his eyes shot up at the small blond girl seated at the counter. "But, it's The Ba-cone," he said a little less enthusiastically, holding up a cone made out of bacon.

Sam's head dropped to the counter in an obvious deflated mood. He put the cone down and headed to the cabinet. He pulled out a glass mug, and then grabbed a bottle of root beer out of the refrigerator. He walked over and set the mug down in front of Sam. "You wanna talk about it?"

"752," she muttered, with her face still pressed against the counter.

"I'm sorry?" Spencer asked as he cracked open the bottle of root beer and started pouring it into the glass sideways to eliminate most of the foam. Just the way Sam liked it.

"That's the number of guys that wanted to take Carly to the dance." She said fingering the mug that he set in front of her. "You know how many people wanted to go with me?"

"Six?" Spencer smiled hopefully.

"Zero!" She said before chugging a drink of the root beer. "A big, fat, stubby, shirtless, Zero!" She chugged down the last of the root beer and banged the glass on the counter twice for a refill.

"Aw come on now, there had to be someone that wanted to go with you." He said coming back with another root beer. "Maybe you just didn't ask the right guy."

"Nope, not one. I couldn't even get Gibby to give me a mercy date!" She said, taking the glass from him. "You know, Spencer. In my short life, I have already come to a conclusion about myself." She lifted her mug in a toast to him and downed the entire glass in one drink. She waited for the last few drops to drip and let the mug fall back to the counter. "I, Samantha Puckett, am unlovable…BURP."

Spencer chuckled at her sudden eruption. It was very impressive coming from such a small being. "You're being a little hard on yourself, aren't you? I mean, everyone has a bad day now and then." Spencer said wiping of the counter next to her. "You've had plenty of guys that have wanted to date you."

"Only until they come off of whatever medication made them think that in the first place." She began pounding her head against the counter, until Spencer grabbed an oven mitt and slid it underneath to protect her forehead. "Thanks," she said with her voice muffled by the oven mitt.

"So, what about that Shane guy? You had fun dating him." Spencer asked pouring himself a glass of root beer.

"Yeah, until Carly and I drove him crazy with our competition and he fell down an elevator shaft." Sam let out a heavy sigh.

"Oh, right. Well there was that kid Pete, the guy that you went all crazy and changed to girly for?"

"You mean Pete the Pu—uh, I mean, some very unladylike word that starts with a 'P' and I shouldn't repeat?" Sam said sheepishly, as she caught the shocked look on Spencer's face.

"He said at my birthday toast that if he was ever in a fight, he'd want me as back up…more like he'd watch me fight, while he backed up!"

"Oh, really!" Spencer leaned against the counter in sudden interest. "I haven't heard this story before."

"It's because I haven't told this story before, not even to Carly." She took a deep frustrated breath. "Turns out the only reason he even took me on his uncle's boat was because the harbor master's son is a butt head that had been giving him a lot of problems, and he wanted me to beat the dude up for him."

"And did you?"

"Well yeah," Sam scoffed. "But only because the dude pelted us with fish and ruined Carly's shoes."

"I thought you told Carly that those shoes fell in the water." Spencer narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her.

"Well, they did…after I threw them at pimple-brained Pete and knocked him off the dock." She shrugged. "I should have gone back to fish them out of the water, but it would have ruined my awesome exit."

"Wow, Sam." Spencer grinned. "Yeah, boys don't like that very much."

"See!" Sam sat up irritated. "I'm hopeless!" She started banging her head against the counter again, pushing away Spencer's attempts to stop her.

"Well, what about Freddie," Spencer threw in as an afterthought.

"What about him?" She asked without stopping her head.

"He kissed you, didn't he?"

Sam froze and stared at him. "Carly told you about that?!"

_Uh, oh._ "Well, yeah…she was kind of freaked after you told her about it while you were on the wacky gas, and she told me not to say anything, but I was just trying to keep you from getting a concussion from pounding your head on the counter, and please don't tell Carly that I told you!" Spencer grabbed Sam by the shoulders hysterically.

"Chill, Spencer. It's alright." She said trying to brush him off. "I won't say anything." She finally got him to calm down, and sat him in her seat. She walked over to get him a glass of water. "It's not like it matters anyway. It was just so that he could get it over with, and so kids would stop teasing him. Like he said it didn't mean anything." Spencer noticed that she frowned slightly at this, as she handed him the water. "I just hate that it'll probably end up to be something he regrets. I mean first kisses should mean something…be with someone special, right?"

"You think he'll regret it?" Spencer asked gently.

Sam looked at him. She never really considered the question before. She knew how _she_ felt about it, but Freddie? "No?" She thought for a second, "Yes? " Her shoulders slumped. "After seeing them last night, I'm sure he already does."

"What do you mean? Saw who?" Spencer asked curiously. From what he heard, Sam never made it to the dance, and Freddie's date turned out horribly.

Sam came around and slumped into the stool next to Spencer. "Gibby blew me off, and I missed the dance. I figured that I'd just meet up with Carly and Freddie later at the Groovy Smoothie, only they —" She stopped, thinking about that moment.

"Only they what?" Spencer pat her leg reassuringly. He could see this was hard for her.

"They were dancing…Carly and Freddie. She had her head on his shoulder, and he had his arms around her and his eyes were closed. They looked really content, so I just left." She started banging her head on the counter again. "He probably wishes he'd waited for her instead."

Spencer was a little dumbstruck by this information. Neither Carly, nor Freddie mentioned it to him. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary with them this morning. He pulled her back from thunking her head on the counter.

"Spencer what if they start dating and decide they don't want me around anymore?" Sam said looking urgently into Spencer's eyes.

"That wouldn't happen, Sam."

"Why wouldn't it? Freddie hates me, and he should. I purposely _try_ and make him miserable, and with Carly it's either I'm always getting her into trouble, or she's trying to get me out of trouble. They'd both be better off without me."

"Come on, Sam." Spencer smiled trying to lighten the mood. "You don't really think that."

"Don't I?" She challenged. "Name one good reason they should keep me around."

Spencer's eyes fixed on Sam in thought for a second. He was just about to open his mouth to say something when the whirring of the elevator behind them drew his attention away.

"I gotta go." Sam slid off the stool, grabbed her purse, and headed quickly for the door.

"Sam, I think it'd be better if you just talked to them." Spencer tried to stop her.

"I don't think I can right now, Spencer. Promise you won't tell them anything I told you."

Spencer stood looking at her pleading eyes. It was against his better judgment, but she did trust him enough to tell him what was bothering her. Just like he would with Carly, he didn't want her to think she couldn't come to him with whatever was on her mind. "Only if you promise me that you're okay."

Sam let out a relieved smile. "I'm fine, Spencer. I just--"

The whirring came to a stop and the bell sounded. Sam turned to leave before her friends could see her. "Just tell her I'll call her later." With that she streaked through the door and shut it just as the elevator doors were nearly open. The last thing she heard was Carly and Freddie's laughter inside.

"Wait, don't go!" Spencer called after her, but she was already gone.

"Wow, something smells delicious, Spencer. Whatcha making?" Freddie asked, as he smelled the bacon-scented air. Spencer didn't respond. He just stood staring at the door with a concerned expression on his face.

"Spencer?" Carly's smile faded. "Freddie asked what you were making. Who just left?"

"Ba-cones." He mumbled, still not breaking his gaze.

"What?" Carly chuckled curiously.

Spencer finally broke his trance. "Uh, Ba-cone's…for Breakfast. And, Sam just left," he added pointing toward the door.

"She didn't stay for breakfast?" Freddie asked sounding a little concerned.

"She said she wasn't hungry," Spencer answered as he looked at the two teenagers.

"Well, didn't you tell her we'd be right back?" Carly didn't like the sound of Sam leaving just as they got there, and without eating.

"Look," Spencer sighed. He didn't like keeping things from them, but he promised Sam. "She's having a bad morning. She saw something last night that kind of freaked her out, and she's just a little bummed right now."

"Come on," Freddie said, heading back toward the Elevator. "Maybe we can still catch her in the lobby."

"No." Spencer stopped them. "She just needs a little time to think."

"Well, did she at least say what it was she saw?" Carly asked urgently.

Spencer's eyes bounced back and forth between them. He wondered why they wouldn't have mentioned their dance to him. "Yes." Spencer nodded looking in Carly's expectant eyes. "But I promised her I wouldn't say."

"Spencer!" Both the kids yelled at him. "I'm calling her." Carly pulled out her phone.

"Carly," Spencer tried to reason, but she had already dialed and was waiting for Sam to answer.

"How could you just let her leave?" Freddie scolded. Spencer shot him a stern look, but Freddie didn't shrink back.

"She's not answering." Carly huffed as she slammed her phone closed.

"Look, guys." Spencer put a hand on each of their shoulders to calm them down. "Sam's just got a lot on her mind. Why don't you just give her some space for today to figure it out on her own, okay?"

"But—" Carly interrupted.

"She'll come to you when she's ready." He leaned eye level with Carly so that she'd know he was serious. He looked behind him at Freddie, who gave a concerned nod.

"Okay," Carly frowned.

Spencer smiled and put his arm around Carly. "Tell you what, why don't you send her a text later telling her you missed her and invite her over for a movie night and sleepover…just the two of you." He looked down and relaxed a bit as he got a small smile from Carly. "In the meantime…WHO WANTS A BA-CONE?"

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**Did I say one shot? I did, didn't I. This doesn't feel like a one shot, does it? Well, I may just have to get inspired enough to make this a two shot or something. Curse you day off for giving me more work! J/K, me and days off are good. We just shouldn't hang around together too often. We kind of get into trouble when we do... something about "Idle Hands" and the Devil. Oh, and I actually saw the Ba-cone on some college life website, it just seemed like such a Spencer thing. Maybe I'll put a picture up on my profile here. I also loved the idea of Spencer being like a bartender listening to Sam's problems...if you caught that. Anyway, while you guys do that little review thing down there, I'll see if I might come up with something to actually finish this puppy, kay?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello My little Fanfic Friends! Good news (I hope) I've decided to continute with this story, and turn it into a 3 shot. Thanks for your patience, and for those who put it on alert. Weren't you the smart ones! **

**My loverly laptop has been out seeing the country with my mama and is finally home! Since I've made you fine peoples wait this long, I don't think I shall wait any longer. Without Further ado, here is Chapter 2.**

**Wait...sorry there's one more ado. The ado that I don't do the the whole iCarly owning thing. Nickelodeon and Dan Schneider do. Understand? You do? Alright good! Now no more ado's. Adieu.**

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Sam stood outside Apt 8C with her knuckles raised toward the door, but she couldn't quite bring herself to actually knock. The truth was, this wasn't the first time she'd stood there in the last 10 minutes, and each time was exactly the same. She took a deep breath and raised her knuckles again, but at the last moment spread her fingers and laid her palm against the door. She rested her head against the wood, ashamed of herself. "You're such a Pansy, Puckett!" She could weaken men three times her size with just a stare, but she didn't have the courage face her best friends right now. She backed away from the door ready to turn toward the elevator, again, when she heard the door open behind her.

"Samantha? Is everything alright?"

Sam turned to see Mrs. Benson poke her head out the door. The woman usually exuded crazy, but now there was a look of soft concern on her face directed at Sam.

"Were you watching me just now?" The question lacked the venom it should have. She was definitely put off guard by the woman's demeanor.

Mrs. Benson adjusted the buttons on her cardigan in an attempt to display authority. "As a concerned tenant, I like to be aware of what goes on in the hallways outside my apartment!" She stepped out and leaned against the doorway. "Anyway, after watching you pace back and forth for a while, I thought maybe I should come see what was going on."

She let out a gentle smirk. Sam could actually see a bit of Freddie in her now. "You know, because I don't want to have to pay for the floor to be resurface after you've worn it out going back and forth between here and the elevator."

"And what makes you think anything is wrong?"

Mrs. Benson chuckled a bit. "Because, I've learned that doors don't seem to mean the same thing to you that they do to the rest of society, so the fact that you're standing on this side of this _particular_ door suggests that all is probably not as it should be."

Sam's eyes quickly darted to the door and then down to her shoes. "Oh."

"Look, Sam." Mrs. Benson said softly. "I won't pretend to even begin to understand you...or sometimes even like you…but for some reason, you're important to Freddie. If you ever need to talk, I'm right across the hall."

Sam looked up in mild horror as she saw Crazy walking toward her. _Ok so she's being sentimental, doesn't mean she actually gets to hug me_. She quickly shirked away, then watched silently as Mrs. Benson reached up and knocked on Carly's door.

"I don't think I'm the one that you need to talk to right now, though." Sam could hear Spencer's muffled voice yell "coming" through the solid door.

"Waiting doesn't make things any easier, Sam." Mrs. Benson glided back through her door and shut it behind her. Sam didn't have much time to think about what Mrs. Benson said, because she heard the door open behind her.

"Hey, you came back!" A broad smile spread across Spencer's face as he grabbed her by the shoulders and guided her inside. Ready or not, Sam was suddenly standing in the middle of the Shay apartment.

"Hey Spencer," she managed a small smile back.

"So, you alright?" Spencer was frowning expectantly at her, as he closed the door. "I've never seen you so upset before, and then you just left." He gave her a gentle bop to the top of her head as he went back to his project. "We were worried about you, kiddo!"

"No Chizz!" She pulled out her phone. "Carly texted my about 30 times. She threatened to sick the entire armed forces on me if I didn't respond." She saw Spencer nod vigorously in agreement, neither one of them would put it past her. "So, is she here?"

"She's upstairs in the studio with Freddie. They're upgrading the monitor." He passed her a brush and a can of pinky-orange paint. "You know they're kind of mad at me for letting you go earlier."

"Sorry, I just needed time to think and sort some stuff out." She loved that Spencer understood her enough to know that keeping her hands busy would clear her mind to speak. She dipped the brush in the jar and started dabbing it onto the hunk of plaster in front of her. "So what is this thing anyway?"

"It's a Banded Piglet Squid" Spencer smiled. "So did you? Think stuff out?"

Sam dipped her brush in, and started dabbing more paint. "I don't know. I mean I'm still a little freaked out about it," she shrugged. She stood back and looked at her handy work. "A Piglet Squid, huh?"

"Yep. Cute little cephalopod, isn't he?" Spencer explained. "This is actually a lot bigger than the real thing. It's for the aquarium's deep sea exhibit in a couple weeks. So why are you still freaked out?"

She busied herself with the painting job in front of her while she continued to talk. Spencer noticed the concern in her eyes as he went to switch brushes. "I know I pretend to be independent and don't really need anyone, but the truth is Spencer…I really need them."

"Aww." He gave her a quick gentle rub to her back

Sam gave a frustrated sigh. "I don't know if, or when they'll start dating, or what will happen if they do. I only know that if I worry about what bad things might happen, I'm going to miss out on all the good things that could happen in the meantime." She shrugged. "I guess there's really no point in missing them until I have to."

Spencer stopped and looked at her in awed amazement. "Sam, that's not only smart, that's completely wise." He smiled as he went back to work. "You're kind of amazing that way. No matter how much garbage you get handed, you rarely let anything beat you for long." He pretended not to notice her blushing beside him.

He pulled the stool around to brush the loose plaster off the eyes. He glanced up at her as she continued distractedly painted the squid's bulbous body. "You remember, how you asked this morning why they should keep you around? Maybe it's because of that. You make them stronger, Sam. Together you guys can take on the world. I mean, look what you guys have accomplished together already: you've bested cops in a supposed pirated movie sting, thwarted Japanese kidnappers, and taken on major network writers. Not to mention Carly being the only person to last a full round with an MMA Champ and coming out as friends" He looked at her as her frown seemed to soften a little bit. "Nobody does these things. You guys are like superheroes!"

There it was, the first real smile he'd seen on her in the past 24 hours. "Yeah, I am Commander Awesome…and I'd so pay a million dollars to see Dork Boy in a pair of tights!" The vision of Freddie in tights set them both off in a fit of laughter.

Spencer wiped the tears from his eyes, and walked over to the stool to get a can of black paint. "Spencer, when I said there's some people I need around…you know you're included in that, right?" She turned around to catch his eye. "Carly is really lucky to have you for a big brother."

Spencer smiled warmly at her. He always felt it, but it was nice to know. "Well, I'm here whenever you need me, kid. Kind of like your unofficial Big Bro." He grabbed her in a headlock and began to lightly rub his knuckles against her head. This action probably would have gotten anyone else a week in traction at the local hospital, but Sam just giggled as she playfully tried to remove his hands. She just managed to get them undone when they heard someone coming down the stairs.

"SAM!!!" Carly screamed and ran down the last few stairs to tackle her in a tight hug. "Are you alright? Why did you go? Where did you disappear to all day? Why didn't you call me back?"

Spencer gave Sam a playful grimace and disappeared into his room, leaving her to fend of Carly's barrage of questions alone. Sam let out a deep sigh, and tried peeling her friend off of her.

"Carly, Carly, it's ok!" Sam finally got Carly to let go. "I'm fine!"

"Good!" Carly let out a calm breath, then hysterically started smacking her friend." How dare you make us worry so much! I was about ready to send out a search party for you!"

Sam ducked to avoid getting hit, "Whoa, Carly Chill!"

Carly finally stopped slapping at her, but she was far from chill. "You blow off the dance, don't show up to meet us afterward, and then you just disappear this morning without a so much as a word, and all you can say is 'Chill?'"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you. I just…had a lot of stuff on my mind."

Carly finally started to calm down. She wanted to get to the bottom of what was bothering Sam. "Spencer said you got freaked out about something last night. You wanna talk about it?"

Sam slowly walked away from Carly, still not wanting to face her. "It's just…I went to the Groovy Smoothie last night, and saw…"

"And saw …?" Carly tried wracking her brain to remember anything out of the ordinary about last night, and it suddenly dawned on her."…Freddie and me dancing."

"Yep."

"And that's what got you all upset?" Carly frowned sympathetically at her friend as she tried to explain. "Sam, that was nothing. We both just had a really bad night. It was just a dance."

"Well, I had a really bad night too., and that's not what it looked like. It looked like…"

"Like what?"

"Like you both were really into it." Sam finally turned to face her. "Carly, do you like Freddie?"

Carly was a caught a little off guard by the question. "You mean Like, Like? No!" Her answer was shot out as a reaction, but she paused to think about it for a moment and then wasn't sure. "At least I don't think so, I mean, it wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be. It was kind of nice, actually."

She was still lost in thought and didn't see Sam's shoulders slump and her eyes dart to the floor. "I mean he's sweet, and funny, and he did pin me to the ground in the studio the other day…" Sam eyes went wide, and she looked at her with shock as she continued. "But we're still just Buds for now."

"Why would that upset you, anyway?" Carly prodded. "It's not like you're into him…are you?"

Sam quickly shot Carly a dirty look. "The reason I was upset is because I was worried that if you two started dating, you wouldn't want me around anymore." The frown had returned to her face. "I don't think I could stand it if you guys started making excuses to get rid of me."

Carly suddenly had a look of realization. "That's what this is all about?" She gave a big smile and wrapped her arms around Sam. "Sam, that would never happen. You're my best friend in the world. We're supposed to grow old together, remember? We were going to play shuffleboard with old men's teeth…or at least you were. I still think that's gross." She shuddered before pulling away and looking into Sam's eyes.

"Don't you know I need you around? You're the first one I call when I go on a date, or if I get my heart broken. You have no idea how excited I am that I have you to share the juicy details with…and I totally expect the same from you. Maybe that's why I was upset that you kept your kiss with Freddie a secret. I would never give you up for Freddie, or any guy." She searched Sam's face for a connection to what she was saying.

A smile slowly spread across Sam's face. "Good!" Carly laughed and grabbed her in a tight hug. "Except…if you do decide to date Freddie, would you mind keeping some of those juicy details a secret? If I have to envision Freddork doing certain things, my head just might explode."

Carly pulled back in shock. "SAM!!!!"

Spencer came out of his room and was excited to see the girls laughing in front of him. "Yay! So are we all in one piece?"

Carly smiled and threw her arm around Sam's shoulders. "Yeah, for now."

"Great!" Spencer clapped. "How about some dinner?"

Sam jumped up and gave a little cheer. "Woo! My second favorite word!"

Spencer looked at her a little curiously. "Second favorite? What's your first?"

"Poughkeepsie!"

"Oh, yeah, that is a good one!" Spencer nodded in agreement.

"Hey, we can still rent that movie if you want to." Carly suggested excitedly. "Freddie should be done in a few minutes. We can go with Spencer to pick it out."

"That's a great idea." Sam said as she looked back up the stairs." But would you guys mind going without me? I think there's one more person here I need to talk to tonight." She gestured up the stairs.

"Yeah sure, we know what food you like, and I'll try not to get anything too girly." Carly said sarcastically.

"Cool,"

Carly started putting on her coat, and stopped Sam before she headed up the stairs. "Oh, I actually came down to get him something to drink. Would you mind taking one up to him when you go?"

Sam nodded and waved as they walked out the door. "See you guys in a few." She went to the refrigerator, and grabbed two bottles of cream soda. She stood at the foot of the stairs. "It's now or never." She sighed as she started up the stairs.

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**Well, Sam still has one more person to face. The good news is the next chapter is written, the bad news is it's not totally finished being edited. I should have this up in a very short while, though. **

**So, Until next time...hug your friends! Actually don't hug them the whole time, that might get a little awkward. Once should be enough, unless they're smelling extra good and you wanna get a little closer. Um, again...awkward. Whatever maybe a nice handshake. Just let them know you care. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello My Little FF Friends, back for more I See! Here we have the third in the 3 part story. This is the Amazingly Super Stupendous Freddie Chronicles. Except it's not really a chronicle...not even Epic really. More like a scene. And now that I think about it, it's not really that stupendous. Super? ...well that might be stretching it a bit too. And it's not just about Freddie, Sam's in there too. All they're _really_ doing is having a converation. Although nobody ends up with a wedgie or in a headlock, so that might be amazing.**

**Hmm, so after all that I hullabaloo guess I should really say "Welcome to the slightly interesting chapter where Sam and Freddie have a conversation, and amazingly nobody gets a wedgie or headlocked." Wow, that's kinda long. Maybe I should just stop talking and let you actually read it, huh? Sounds good to me! Fantastic, so why don't you go look at those words down there.**

**Oh, and don't forget these words that tell you that I don't own iCarly which adds another big ol' cherry to my day, I tell ya. Jeesh! Now go read those other words.**

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Sam walked in to see Freddie with his back to her. He was messing with the set monitor. "Hey Freddie." She hated this kind of confrontation, and his lack of response made her a little more nervous. "I brought you a drink." Still no response, he was apparently ignoring her. She walked over and set the drink on the cart.

She leaned against the cart and tried one last time. "So uh, Carly sort of yelled at me for worrying everyone...not that you…"

"I was worried." He said plainly.

Sam was a bit surprised, both that he spoke, and at his reply. "You were? But, why would _you_…" He still hadn't turned toward her. He wasn't going to make this easy. "Umm, I thought maybe I should explain why I ran out this morning."

"You don't have to." He continued working on the monitor and didn't look back. "I heard Carly yell your name, and I came down to see if you were here. I didn't want to interrupt you guys talking, so I stayed on the landing."

"You were listening?" She became a little embarrassed. She wouldn't have asked him the same questions she asked Carly; mostly because she didn't really want to know the answers. "How much did you hear?"

"Almost all of it." He began sorting out the wires. "You saw us dancing and started to doubt that you should be around us…and everything after that."

She looked down in embarrassment. "Oh."

"You know, Carly's right, you'd be incredibly missed if you weren't here." He gave a small quick smile back over his shoulder and continued with the monitor. Sam watched him lean over to grab a tool, but the box was just out of reach.

"Don't worry,I'll be around for a while." Sam gave a little smile. "I won't make that mistake again. She's very important to me." Sam walked over and handed him a Philips head. "…you both are."

Freddie looked down to take the tool and held her eyes for a breif moment. She felt the heat rise in her cheeks before she finally broke the eye contact and looked down at her shoes.

"So…uh, I just wanted to tell you that if you and Carly wanted to start dating, I guess you'd have my blessing." It wasn't exactly a joyful blessing, but she really did wish her friends to be happy.

"Well, thanks…" He came down the ladder and pushed the button to test the monitor. "I'm not sure I'm gonna need it, though."

Sam was a little shocked by his statement. "But, I saw you two together. She wouldn't have gotten so close, if she wasn't in to it." Although she was somewhat relieved, she was trying to sound enthusiastic and supportive. "I think you may have finally worn her down, kid; you might actually have a shot. She looked like she was really into you."

"I know, but…"

"But what?" Sam pulled up a chair and sat with her knees pulled up and her arms wrapped around her legs. "I suppose you're going to say 'it didn't mean anything', and 'It was just a dance." She used the air quotes, much to his frustration.

"No. It meant something." He noticed Sam's face fall a bit, but he walked over and started putting his tools back. His feelings were already so confused , and talking with her now was not making things any easier. "It's just that, I had everything I thought I ever wanted right there in my arms." He gave a small smile at the memory of his dance with Carly. "She had her head against me, and she smelled _sooo good_…"

"I know, I saw, remember?" Sam cut him off. It was disturbing enough to see. She wasn't in the mood to reminisce about it.

"…And it was perfect, everything I could have asked for." Freddie's face suddenly changed. "It just didn't feel…right."

He now had Sam's undivided attention. She dropped one of her legs down to the floor and turned toward him, suddenly more interested in this conversation. "What do you mean?"

Freddie shrugged. "I don't know. It's just…" He scratched the back of his head as he searched for the words. "I mean, I felt more comfortable dancing with you at the club that night, and I thought you were trying to play a joke on me then, so I was on guard."

"Freddie it was Mel…" She let out a frustrated sigh, as she started to correct him.

"Ok, so it was _Melanie_," He said sarcastically. "But it was still so…natural, familiar; at least when I thought I was dancing with you." He gave a small frown. "With Carly it didn't feel like that. It felt…forced, maybe? I don't know, I just expected it to feel different."

Sam's thoughts were now all mixed up due to the turn of this conversation. "So now you don't like Carly anymore?"

Freddie let off a little sigh as he closed the box and set aside the tools. "I don't know what I feel anymore. All I know is that 24 hours ago, I was sure I was in love with Carly Shay, and now…" He shrugged. "Ugh, I'm so confused!" He groaned in frustration

Sam smiled a bit in understanding. "Yeah, that seems to be going around lately."

"Man, why can't this stuff ever be easy?" He heard Sam chuckle in agreement and started to relax. He grabbed his drink then pulled up another chair and straddled it across from her.

"So, seeing Carly and me doesn't seem like the kind of thing that would throw you like that." He tested softly. "What got you all worked up?"

Sam groaned and threw her head back against the chair. "Ugh, Gibby!"

Freddie began to chuckle. "Gibby got you all flustered?"

"Well, he just started it." Sam leaned toward Freddie as the excitement started building in her story. "I went over and was going to drag him out of the house and make him take me to take me to the dance. Only he wasn't alone. He had a date."

Freddie raised his eyebrows in shock. "A girl date?"

"No! A GORGEOUS girl date! Tasha!"

Freddie nearly spit out the drink he had just taken. "Gibby?!"

Sam chuckled as Freddie wiped the cream soda off his chin. "And they had the stereo up, and he was drinking out of fancy glasses, and wearing leave in conditioner, AND they were feeding each other strawberries and whip cream!"

"Seriously? They were feeding each other?"

"I don't know. for sure," She waved him off. "In my imagination they were, but strawberries and whipped cream were _definitely_ involved." Sam watched Freddie break out into hysterical laughter.

"That's just so…so against nature!" Freddie held a stitch in his side until his laughter started dying back down to a chuckle.

"Exactly!" Sam raised her arms in triumph, as someone finally understood. "It's like some parallel universe where everything I thought I knew, suddenly was totally wrong." Sam's laughter started to die as she realized where the conversation was going next. "…And then I saw you two…"

Their laughter totally stopped and they sat together in awkward silence as they each remembered the event.

Sam started picking at a loose string on her sleeve to avoid eye contact with Freddie. Finding the words was hard enough without having to look at him. "You know, Carly said no to you so many times, that I was sure it would never happen. Then all of a sudden it didn't look like a "No" anymore."

She chanced a glance a him before starting on the other sleeve. "I mean, you already had three girls offer to take you to the dance. That's more than I thought you'd get in your entire lifetime…and then at the end of the night you were with the one person I thought would be impossible for you to be with. Nothing made sense anymore."

Freddie watched her with a sad curiosity. "And that made you question our friendship?"

"I mean, I never doubted it before, but I started thinking that if you guys had each other..." She spoke so softly he barely heard her. "...maybe you wouldn't want me around anymore."

"That's stupid Sam!" He gave her a gentle slap to the side of her knee for reassurance. "You know that."

"Yeah, I know! I told you, the whole world upside down thing." She relaxed and curled herself back into the chair. "Face it, without me you'd probably be stuck in your nerd lair all pale from over exposure to LCD light from your monitor and chatting with your Geek Wars buddies about what it might feel like to actually kiss a girl…I just kind of forgot that for a minute."

Freddie chuckled and blushed a bit, curious as to how right she might actually be.

"I really missed you today, Sam." He confessed in a low tone. Sam shifted her head to look at him. "After everything that happened last night, I really needed to talk to someone. Obviously it couldn't be Carly, and Spencer would have been too weird since…well. My other guy friends don't understand how the three of us work, and my mom?" He shuddered a bit trying to imagine talking to his mom about this. "I needed _you_ today Sam."

She was slightly flattered by this, but she was still Sam. "You realize I would have ripped you a new one over it?"

Freddie smiled and took another drink. "Yeah, I know. But eventually you would have listened…you did listen." It was nice having her back to normal self. "Thanks, Sam."

Sam gave him a warm smile as acknowledgement, and then uncurled herself from the chair. "Well, just don't go thinking you're all special or anything Fredlumps."

"No, Never! How could I?" He smiled as he got up and headed toward the console.

Sam stood up and took a big stretch. "Ahhh, Carly will be back in a few minutes." She yawned. "I'm going to go make a sandwich before they get back."

She pulled the chair back toward the wall and walked past Freddie toward the door. Freddie grabbed her by the wrist and spun her around toward him before wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug.

"I'm glad you're back, Sam. Please, don't ever do that again."

Sam was a little shocked by his boldness, but she was in a pretty generous mood. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and laid her chin against his shoulder.

"Never again because of you guys...Now if the police happen to be chasing me, I'm taking these puppies as far as they can go, as fast as they can go."

Freddie's deep laugh vibrated against her chest, and she closed her eyes at the sensation. She hated the moment when he let go.

She gave him a light punch to the gut, then walked over to the door. "Oh, and about all that other stuff, Benson…I'm sure you'll figure it out. I'm here if you need me until you do." She walked out the door and caught his smile through the glass, before she disappeared to the kitchen and the comfort of her 'Sammich.' She was done with the conversations, and done with the doubting. Sam's world was exactly how it should be, and she was "home"…at least for now.

* * *

**So crisis over, at least for now. What, can't a girl have a bad day without the whole building falling apart. I love how her friends reacted to get her thorough it. I think every now and then, even Sam needs to feel wanted. I know some of you might have wanted something a little different to the ending. I like that at the base of the whole Freddie/Sam relationship, they still care. No matter how much they protest it. I set out to make this a good little friendship piece, and I think I'm satisfied. So in other words...This is my story, and I'm sticking to it! LOL. Maybe the next one will be different.**

**Oh one more thing before I go. I forgot to mention that I posted a pic of the Banded Piglet Squid (The sculpture Spencer was working on last chapter) on my profile. Click on there if you want to see a photo of the little guy. I think I will call him Gerald. (let me know if you have a better name) Bye for now.**


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